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Monday, August 31, 2015

Sharing a fun end of summer song with you -"Summer Nights" from Grease. This movie musical came out in 1978, during my teen years, and I saw it several times the year it was released. It was a huge hit with all my teen friends. This scene is from early in the movie. Sandy (Olivia Newton John) has just started high school at a new school. She does not realize that her summer crush, Danny (John Travolta) is at the same school. They are each recounting their summer romance to their friends ... with slightly different versions.Is Grease one of your favorites? What do you think of the upcoming live tv remake? I would love to hear from you in the comments, below.

Did
a down on his luck former student steal a priceless book? Grad student
and cat lover Dulcie Schwartz thinks not and she sets out to prove it.”

It is spring break, and Dulcie Schwartz
has stayed behind in almost-deserted Cambridge, Massachusetts to
concentrate on her thesis. But when a former student turned vagrant,
Jeremy Mumbles, is found injured, with a valuable missing book clutched
in his arms, Dulcie can t seem to let it go. What was he doing with the
book? And why has it turned up after all these years?

With Jeremy now the prime suspect for a
series of break-ins in the area, Dulcie is determined to clear the
unfortunate former scholar s name. But when she finds a connection
between the book he was carrying and her own research into an anonymous
Gothic author, the search for clues takes on a new intensity and a new
menace.

Birdhouse Books Interviews Clea Simon

Birdhouse: When did you realize you wanted to be a
writer?

Clea: It was never a conscious realization. I
always made up stories. As soon as I could write, I wrote those stories down.
It was more a question of how could I make a living writing? And to do that, I
went into journalism and then, finally, writing books.

Birdhouse: What was your favorite book as a child?

Clea: Oh, I had so many!
I adored – still adore – C.S. Lewis’s “Chronicles of Narnia.” And when I was a
little older I got into JRR Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings.” Those were
probably my main loves. You can probably see the influence of Narnia’s Aslan
the lion in my ghost cat, Mr Grey.

Birdhouse: What is your writing day like? Do you
have any interesting writing quirks?

Clea: I go for a certain word count each day.
That’s what works for me. And when things aren’t going well, I try to give
myself permission to write badly. I tell myself that I can throw out whatever I
write the next day, but I have to get the words on paper or I can’t quit! My biggest quirk is that I tend to not really
get started till mid- to late afternoon. I waste hours doing everything and
anything else first, but I’ve learned that’s just my process!

Birdhouse: What was the most surprising thing you learned
while creating this book?

Clea: I got to research book conservation – how
conservators work to save ancient texts, and how some old inks actually eat
through paper over time. That was fascinating to me!

Birdhouse: Who are your favorite authors?

Clea: Oh, it depends on the day! I love Hilary
Mantel and Donna Leon, Anthony
Trolloppe, and JRR Tolkien. Geoff Dyer and Naomi Novik… and that’s just today!

Birdhouse: What is your next writing project?

Clea: I have a new series kicking off next spring
with “The Ninth Life,” also for Severn House (which is publishing “Code Grey.”)
It’s a darker book than my other mysteries, and it’s basically focused on an
orphaned girl looking to find out what happened to her murdered mentor. It’s
narrated by a black cat who befriends the girl (she has saved his life). I’m
working on the edits for that now, and it’s great fun!

About The Author

Clea Simon is the author of 18 mysteries
in the Theda Krakow, DulcieSchwartz, and Pru Marlowe pet noir series.
The latter two are ongoing and include her most recent books, Code Grey (Severn House) and Kittens Can Kill (Poisoned
Pen Press). A former journalist and nonfiction author, she lives in
Somerville, Mass., with her husband, the writer Jon Garelick, and their
cat Musetta. She can be reached at http://www.cleasimon.com

About Me

Trish is a long-time online seller who loves all things vintage, but especially vintage children's books and ephemera. In other lives, worked as a bookstore manager and preschool teacher. Always pursuing vintage treasures, great reads, interesting words, and happiness.